Havey Norman sole me a second hand mac without telling me

SPENSERDOXX

I guess Im here to ask for advice or to see if anyone else has come across this issue.. I bought an iMac from Harvey Norman, they gave me a 200 euro discount because I told them over the phone that I saw the same model on sale in argos for that price, they basically matched it.

I am a web developer by trade, a freelance one, so this imac is vital to me.. 3 days ago it died leaving me with no primary desktop to carry out my day to day work.. upon bringing it to an apple approved repair center they asked me if its in warranty and I said yes, I only bought it in march to which the store assistant told me "oh thats weird the warranty was activated in november 2015" so after asking him how this is possible he told me that someone must have started up the mac and connected to the internet as that is how the warranty activates.

Whats extremely vexing for me is the fact that because I was getting a discount on the mac I specifically told the guy I don't want a store refurb, second hand or display model.

The hard drive is corrupted and I have a lot of un-backed up work on it.. a lot.. like thousands of euro worth of current projects and projects that are to be delivered in months time on it, if it cant be salvaged am I entitled to anything, as well as that I have no desktop so my working capacity is going to be reduced to 75% by having to use a laptop never mind the fact that I have to setup the laptop as a development machine and reinstall my scripts, databases, local sites and apps and whatever backups I can managed to pull... the whole situation is an absolute mess..

I know that under the supply of Sale of Goods and Supply of Services Act 1980 it states that goods must be:
as described, whether the description is part of the advertising or wrapping, on a label, or something said by the salesperson.

which my imac was not.. but that only entitles me to a refund or replacement, luckily the guys in the apple shop are going to fix it as it is still under warranty until November (going by the activation date that I did not activate). But now I want to know what if anything I am entitled to from Harvey Norman. I find it absolutely disgusting that the sales clerk bare faced lied to me by saying that it was a brand new model it was even in a sealed box when he brought it out and told me so after I told him how I specifically didn't want a used model for that price not only that but when I rang the store to ask them would they match Argos price I had also said I dont want a second hand model because when I contacted Argos the model they had was pristine..

BTW: I am not the guy who looks to make a quick buck, nor do I like to have to make trips to solicitors but then again Im not the guy who likes to be sold items that are second hand without being informed of the fact.

mass_debater

You're probably in the wrong forum, there is an Apple forum.
http://touch.boards.ie/forum/1176

Saipanne

Consumer issues

http://touch.boards.ie/forum/580

SPENSERDOXX

Not sure its an Apple problem, They are still going to fix it.. but Harvey Norman still sold me a product that had its warranty activated prior to me purchasing it and possibly could be the the main contributory factor to why the computer broke just months after purchase.

smash

If it was a display model you should have been informed but then again did you not notice that the box wasn't sealed when you bought it?

Despite that, a corrupt HD though is nothing to do with them and you really should have been backing up. You might be entitled to a replacement or repair but no compensation for lost work when you should have been backing up.

SPENSERDOXX

The box was sealed and I get what your saying about it should have been backed up but if they sold me a product that had been test driven before and had an issue before it was sold I should be entitled for some kind of loss of earnings.

smash

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

The box was sealed and I get what your saying about it should have been backed up but if they sold me a product that had been test driven before and had an issue before it was sold I should be entitled for some kind of loss of earnings.

If it was a demo model the box wouldn't have been sealed nor the unit wrapped.

SPENSERDOXX

So that leaved the mystery of who activated the warranty nearly 6 months before i bought it, no matter what way I look at it something is fishy about it.

gctest50

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

I am a web developer by trade, a freelance one, so this imac is vital to me..

If that is true, you have absolutely no excuse for not backing things up

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

The hard drive is corrupted and I have a lot of un-backed up work on it.. a lot..

Even if it was brand new, it could just fail with no warning



rough idea of failure over time :

smash

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

So that leaved the mystery of who activated the warranty nearly 6 months before i bought it, no matter what way I look at it something is fishy about it.

I would have been under the impression that a warranty was issued with a batch number and not upon activation. For example my iPhone has a warranty recall issue because of the batch number.

mickdw

Jesus forget about loss of earnings and all that nonsense. You know you should have everything backed up and the manufacturer warranty does not stretch to anything other than repairing the machine. In your situation I'd have thought you would have more than one machine that you could jump work on with projects stored in multiple places.
aside from all that, you have a valid case against the retailer. Imo they should be replacing your display model with a new machine now.

SPENSERDOXX

I knew the whole brigade of "You should be backing up" would be out in force and if you knew me you would know that i push to git at the end of every day but lets be honest when any of our computers die there is always things we havent backed up. Me backing up is not the issue, it just adds to the issue for me.. The issue is the good I was sold!!!!!

You are also ignoring the fact that the warranty was activated..

SPENSERDOXX

@smash : not according to the apple repair center

dbagman

why didnt you just buy it in argos then?
Unless you didnt see it for the same price and just chanced your arm,in which case they kind of called your bluff a bit?

SPENSERDOXX

dbagman wrote: »

why didnt you just buy it in argos then?
Unless you didnt see it for the same price and just chanced your arm,in which case they kind of called your bluff a bit?

Because I don't live in the city centre and Harvey Norman was closer to me

Mattie500

You are right, there is something odd about the warranty being activated. Have you said anything to Harvey Norman?
On loss of earnings etc... Much more difficult ground.... Buying as a consumer from a retailer is a bit different to buying as a business from a specialist provider. It is a pain (I have been in that position) being without your means of income with the limitations of consumer rights (replace repair etc and the time it takes)

Gormal

I'm not an expert nor have I come across this scenario.

Get a letter from the service centre about the warranty activation date as evidence, which shows the item wasn't brand new in sealed box, but probably an ex display (any sign the seal was tampered with?). I'm afraid as far as I am aware (I could be wrong) all you are entitled to is a refund as goods were not sold as specified and didn't last as would be expected per price paid.

It's not the stores fault that you did not back up your data using something like Macrium Reflect backup. So they can't be held accountable for loss of data. No matter how frustrating it is. Although you could try it. (stress, inconvenience etc)

Depending on the solution you want. You can go in person to the store and speak to management (calmly) or write to the store manager or head office, politely stating the facts (can be hard, I know) with copies of the receipt and letter from the service centre about how it was activated months prior to your purchase. You either tell them what you want or ask them to explain themselves and how they propose to resolve the matter. Try and keep it brief and to the point.
Perhaps they will offer a newer better model that has not been tampered with or may compensate you somehow. You may find a resolution that you are content with or wish to take it further to the small claims court (but seek advice first).

Perhaps somebody may have a better answer than that. To be honest some of the sales clerks are a bit clueless especially when you know your stuff and get technical.

the_syco

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

The hard drive is corrupted and I have a lot of un-backed up work on it.. a lot.. like thousands of euro worth of current projects and projects that are to be delivered in months time on it

GET YOUR LAPTOP BACK, and bring it to someone that specialises in data recovery.

Unless you bought it with a special business warranty, no-one cares about your data. With Windows laptops, fixing the laptop means wiping the hard-drive and reinstalling so that the laptop is back up and running. Check your warranty.

If it contains enough info, it's probably in your best interests to have a specialist recover the data.

dbagman

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

Because I don't live in the city centre and Harvey Norman was closer to me

ok,well theres a petrol station at the top of my estate, what response do you think Id get if I drove into them and said the petrol station 10 miles down the road is selling theirs cheaper and they should match it coz their shop is more convenient for me. Iv a sneaking suspicion theres more than meets the eye here. either there was a misunderstanding between you and harvey norman or youre not giving us all the info. I'm fairly certain you'd be aware if a box had been opened and resealed in store.

SPENSERDOXX

Mattie500 wrote: »

You are right, there is something odd about the warranty being activated. Have you said anything to Harvey Norman?
On loss of earnings etc... Much more difficult ground.... Buying as a consumer from a retailer is a bit different to buying as a business from a specialist provider. It is a pain (I have been in that position) being without your means of income with the limitations of consumer rights (replace repair etc and the time it takes)

I haven't said anything to Harvey Norman yet because their not open but they can't really offer me anything at this point that will improve the situation as Apple is taking care of the broken computer

SPENSERDOXX

dbagman wrote: »

ok,well theres a petrol station at the top of my estate, what response do you think Id get if I drove into them and said the petrol station 10 miles down the road is selling theirs cheaper and they should match it coz their shop is more convenient for me. Iv a sneaking suspicion theres more than meets the eye here. either there was a misunderstanding between you and harvey norman or youre not giving us all the info. I'm fairly certain you'd be aware if a box had been opened and resealed in store.

Can you please stop commenting on this thread as you are of no help. Your Assumtions are all incorrect, Harvey Norman are known to match prices in fact they almost encourage you to haggle which is why I did so, i was hoping that they would give me a lower price than what Argos were offering but they just matched it, I would have went to Argos in the ilac except for the fact that I am closer to airside. There is literally no other side to this story, that is fact!

You are right, I would hope to know if the seal was broken but for all intents and purposes it appeared sealed and new to me!

pixbyjohn

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

I knew the whole brigade of "You should be backing up" would be out in force and if you knew me you would know that i push to git at the end of every day but lets be honest when any of our computers die there is always things we havent backed up. Me backing up is not the issue, it just adds to the issue for me.. The issue is the good I was sold!!!!!

You are also ignoring the fact that the warranty was activated..

But you knew the warranty was activated before you bought it and you ignored it too, why didn't you ask at the time for another unit?????????
Sorry to hear that it went belly up though, not a nice experience

smash

dbagman wrote: »

ok,well theres a petrol station at the top of my estate, what response do you think Id get if I drove into them and said the petrol station 10 miles down the road is selling theirs cheaper and they should match it coz their shop is more convenient for me. Iv a sneaking suspicion theres more than meets the eye here. either there was a misunderstanding between you and harvey norman or youre not giving us all the info. I'm fairly certain you'd be aware if a box had been opened and resealed in store.

HN will always price match. A petrol station won't.

SPENSERDOXX

Gormal wrote: »

I'm not an expert nor have I come across this scenario.

Get a letter from the service centre about the warranty activation date as evidence, which shows the item wasn't brand new in sealed box, but probably an ex display (any sign the seal was tampered with?). I'm afraid as far as I am aware (I could be wrong) all you are entitled to is a refund as goods were not sold as specified and didn't last as would be expected per price paid.

It's not the stores fault that you did not back up your data using something like Macrium Reflect backup. So they can't be held accountable for loss of data. No matter how frustrating it is. Although you could try it. (stress, inconvenience etc)

Depending on the solution you want. You can go in person to the store and speak to management (calmly) or write to the store manager or head office, politely stating the facts (can be hard, I know) with copies of the receipt and letter from the service centre about how it was activated months prior to your purchase. You either tell them what you want or ask them to explain themselves and how they propose to resolve the matter. Try and keep it brief and to the point.
Perhaps they will offer a newer better model that has not been tampered with or may compensate you somehow. You may find a resolution that you are content with or wish to take it further to the small claims court (but seek advice first).

Perhaps somebody may have a better answer than that. To be honest some of the sales clerks are a bit clueless especially when you know your stuff and get technical.

Yeah I will try to talk to them tomorrow but now that Apple are going to fix it I don't think they can offer me anything of any use. I got the apple specialist to print off the details about the activation so I have that at least, I also have the original box but it looks brand new too.

It's such a pain as I had a lot of software installed and it will probably take me a day or two to reinstall all backups and software alone.

SPENSERDOXX

pixbyjohn wrote: »

But you knew the warranty was activated before you bought it and you ignored it too, why didn't you ask at the time for another unit?????????
Sorry to hear that it went belly up though, not a nice experience

No..... The point is I didn't know, this only became apparent today when I brought it to be repaired and he technician checked my warranty

dbagman

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

Can you please stop commenting on this thread as you are of no help. Your Assumtions are all incorrect, Harvey Norman are known to match prices in fact they almost encourage you to haggle which is why I did so, i was hoping that they would give me a lower price than what Argos were offering but they just matched it, I would have went to Argos in the ilac except for the fact that I am closer to airside. There is literally no other side to this story, that is fact!

You are right, I would hope to know if the seal was broken but for all intents and purposes it appeared sealed and new to me!

Im confused,you posted on a public forum. Maybe you should reconsider posting on a public forum if you're not prepared for responses from the public? To address me being of no help. Im giving my 2 cents on your initial post. Again the general idea of using a public forum. The fact you've said the box appeared sealed properly says to me it isnt in fact anything to do with harvey norman. You should be able to tell almost immediately if a box has been resealed as they are done so in factory. All Im trying to point out is youve jumped straight to pointing the finger at HN when it would appear it might not be anything to do with them. And defo not regarding your data or work loss. My opinion....

vicwatson

pixbyjohn wrote: »

But you knew the warranty was activated before you bought it and you ignored it too, why didn't you ask at the time for another unit?????????
Sorry to hear that it went belly up though, not a nice experience

No, the op didn't, did you read it?

the_syco

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

Yeah I will try to talk to them tomorrow but now that Apple are going to fix it I don't think they can offer me anything of any use.

Ask for the original hard-drive unformatted, offer to pay for it. Explain you have business data on it.

Offer to pay, so that they give you the hard-drive. Going in guns blazing wanting it back for free will get a polite company line saying "no".

SPENSERDOXX

dbagman wrote: »

Im confused,you posted on a public forum. Maybe you should reconsider posting on a public forum if you're not prepared for responses from the public? To address me being of no help. Im giving my 2 cents on your initial post. Again the general idea of using a public forum. The fact you've said the box appeared sealed properly says to me it isnt in fact anything to do with harvey norman. You should be able to tell almost immediately if a box has been resealed as they are done so in factory. All Im trying to point out is youve jumped straight to pointing the finger at HN when it would appear it might not be anything to do with them. And defo not regarding your data or work loss. My opinion....

Yes but you are making an awful lot of assumptions and placing me in the wrong, which I am not.. Harvey Norman sold me the product therefore in my eyes the buck stops with them.. Period!!

Gormal

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

Yeah I will try to talk to them tomorrow but now that Apple are going to fix it I don't think they can offer me anything of any use. I got the apple specialist to print off the details about the activation so I have that at least, I also have the original box but it looks brand new too.

It's such a pain as I had a lot of software installed and it will probably take me a day or two to reinstall all backups and software alone.

The issue is still that you were sold a product that had been activated months prior to purchase. Doesn't matter if Apple repair it or not. You are still entitled to a full refund or replacement on these grounds since you have that letter about the activation.

dbagman

SPENSERDOXX wrote: »

Yes but you are making an awful lot of assumptions and placing me in the wrong, which I am not.. Harvey Norman sold me the product therefore in my eyes the buck stops with them.. Period!!

But youre making an awful lot of assumptions and placing Harvey Norman in the wrong!

I'm merely trying to look at it from another point of view. One which if the package was intact as you say isnt entirely inconceivable